'I am not coming back to Mumbai ever again'

People often come to Mumbai to fulfil their dreams. But for the Golapkar family, the city has turned into their worst nightmare. For the daughter of 43-year-old Aarti Golapkar, who succumbed to head injuries after falling off a train while she tried to avoid a thief from robbing her bag, Mumbai is a place of horrors, and she wishes never to return to the city.

Aarti Golapkar succumbed to the severe head injuries she sustained on Saturday. Her body was taken to Chiplun for the final rites. Pic/Datta Kumbhar

Speaking to MiD DAY, 19-year-old Raveena said, “I am not coming back to Mumbai again.” The teenager was shocked when she learnt that her mother, who was returning home from work on Thursday evening, fell off a moving train between Ghansoli and Rabale stations while someone attempted to rob her bag.

The 43-year-old victim, a resident of Dombivli, passed away on Saturday evening and on Sunday, her family took the body to Chiplun, their native home, for the final rites. A distressed Raveena, who had come to the city a year ago for work, now plans not to return to the city.

“I was not even informed that my mother had met with such a major accident. All her colleagues told me was that she suffered minor injuries in a train accident. It was only when I reached the hospital that I learned the gravity of the situation. I was heartbroken to see the condition my mother was in,” said Raveena.

She added that she had come to the city after completing her Std X and was working as a compounder in a dispensary in Dombivli. “I did not like travelling and therefore, chose to work close to home. But, after the incident, I am not coming back ever and will live with my grandmother in Chiplun. Now that my mother has passed away, I have no family left in Mumbai,” added a dejected Raveena.

Investigations Police inquiries revealed that Aarti was seriously injured because while falling off the train, she hit her head on a pole. Many eyewitnesses, her colleagues from work, told the authorities that Aarti was standing on the footboard of the Thane-bound train, as she was in a hurry to take the connecting train to Dombivli.

After the fall, Aarti was rushed to Thane’s Criti Care Hospital where she was declared brain dead by doctors on Friday. Meanwhile, the Vashi GRP has detained 12 people, who are known to be habitual offenders in the area. Senior Inspector Parshuram Karyakarte from Vashi GRP, said, “We are tracing people who have past records. A year ago, a similar accident had occurred but the woman was not so gravely injured, as she fell on grass. However, her jewellery too was stolen.”

12 The number people were detained by Vashi GRP, who are known to be habitual offenders